Detectives Jeffrey Krieger (left) and Robert Layton are shown with the meritorious service awards they received during the Gloucester County Police Awards Banquet on Oct. 23.
Mantua police won several honors at the Gloucester County Police Awards Banquet at Adelphia Restaurant in Deptford on Oct. 23.
“It’s always nice to be recognized for the jobs that we do,” said Police Chief Darren White. “This is not simply one cop giving another one an award because they like them. Rather, the awards are recommended by the department and evaluated through a committee to decide whether or not they are deserving based on definitions in the awards bylaws.”
Officers Adam Hassleman and Greg Sweeney, as well as Det. Jeff Krieger, won distinguished service awards for apprehending the suspect in more than 40 burglaries at self-storage facilities. Cpl. Steven Wolfsgruber won the same award for arresting two suspects during a traffic stop who had $75,000 worth of stolen copper wires in their possession.
Wolfgruber also earned the K-9 deployment award with his animal partner, Tyson, and the 2024 Gloucester County Officer of the Year Award. Over the course of the year, the duo made more than 115 arrests; 65 narcotics arrests; a number of major drug seizures; and multiple firearm recoveries, according to Mantua police.
“Having the Gloucester County Officer of the Year is definitely a special thing,” White noted. “Cpl. Wolfsgruber is a hard-working and knowledgeable officer who very much deserves it.”
Krieger and Det. Sgt. Robert Layton each earned the meritorious service award for their roles in arresting four armed suspects in a stolen car after a police chase that stretched into Philadelphia.
The retail theft unit – consisting of Sgt. Brian Crispin, Cpl. Jesse Bair, and officers Tyler Robertson, Aaron Romano and Jacob Jowett – won a unit citation for making more than 95 retail theft arrests and apprehending 10 leaders of organized retail theft rings, according to the department.
Several retired township officers were awarded honorable discharges.
“All of our officers who received awards are deserving,” White maintained. “Despite the nice area that we all live in, our officers respond to and see things that the average person never has to deal with once in their life, let alone multiple times. This is the same for every town around here.
“I don’t think most people realize how much police officers deal with, regardless of the type of town, and how taxing it can actually be,” he added. “These recognitions are a small part in showing that our actions are appreciated.”
The department recently got in-house training on how to respond to situations that closely mirror real-life scenarios.
“This will allow us to be as prepared as possible if and when we have to respond to real situations,” White said.
